Registers – Records – Conductive
Reexamination Certificate
1998-01-16
2001-04-24
Tremblay, Mark (Department: 2876)
Registers
Records
Conductive
C235S380000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06220516
ABSTRACT:
TECHNICAL FIELD
The present invention relates generally to a process for manufacturing an enclosed transceiver, such as a radio frequency identification (“RFID”) tag.
BACKGROUND
In the field of radio frequency identification (“RFID”), communication systems have been developed utilizing relatively large packages whose size is on the order of that of a cigarette package or a substantial fraction thereof, and generally speaking, have been fabricated using hybrid circuit fabrication techniques. These relatively large electronic packages have been affixed, for example, to railroad cars to reflect RF signals in order to monitor the location and movement of such cars.
With respect to an enclosed electronic apparatus, a system for handling baggage in an airport terminal is a typical application. Such a system incorporates radio frequency identification (RFID) between interrogators and transceivers. Further, each baggage tag is an enclosed, battery operated transceiver.
Other smaller passive RFID packages have been developed for applications in the field of transportation, including the tracking of automobiles. These packages include reflective systems of the type produced by Amtech Inc. of Dallas, Tex. However, these reflective passive RFID packages which operate by modulating the impedance of an antenna are inefficient in operation, require large amounts of power to operate, and have a limited data handling capability.
In still other applications of article location and tracking, such as in the postal service or in the field of airline baggage handling and transport, it has not been practical or feasible to use the above relatively large and expensive RFID hybrid packages on smaller articles of transport such as letters, boxed mail shipments or airline luggage. Accordingly, in these latter areas of transport monitoring, as well as many other areas such as inventory control of stored articles, article location and tracking methods have traditionally employed bar code identification and optical character recognition (OCR) techniques which are well known in the art.
Bar code identification and OCR techniques are labor intensive and may, for example, require several airline employees or postal workers to physically manipulate the article and/or the bar code readers to read these bar codes before the transported article reaches its final destination. In addition, the cost of bar code readers and optical character readers is high, limiting the number of locations at which these readers can be used. Furthermore, both bar code readers and optical character readers tend to be highly unreliable.
In yet further and somewhat unrelated fields of: (1) animal tracking and (2) plant tracking, other types of passive RFID tags have been developed by Hughes/IDI/Destron of Irvine, Calif. These tags utilize a coil wrapped around a ferrite core. Such passive RFID tags have a very limited range, on the order of nine (9) inches, have a very limited data handling capability, and are not field programmable. In addition, these tags are limited in data storage capacity and are slow in operation.
In view of the problems described above and related problems that consequently become apparent to those skilled in the applicable arts, the need remains for enclosed electronic apparatus including transceivers wherein the enclosure is inexpensive, readily manufactured in high volume, appropriate in size for use as a stamp, label, or tag, and, in the case of transceivers, operable over distances of several hundred feet without regard for the spacial orientation of the enclosure.
SUMMARY
The general purpose and principal object of the present invention is to provide a novel alternative approach to all of the above prior art RFID, OCR, and bar code type location tracking and data storage systems. This new approach as described and claimed herein represents a fundamental breakthrough in the field of article transport control in a wide variety of fields, of which the fields of airline baggage transport, delivery of parcels and mail, and inventory control are only three examples.
To accomplish this purpose and object, we have invented and developed a new and improved radio frequency identification device, an associated electrical system, and a method for communicating with a remote RFID device from a local interrogator and controller. The size of this new device will typically be on the order of one inch square and 0.03 inches thick, or only slightly larger and slightly thicker than a postage stamp. This device includes, in combination, an integrated circuit (IC) which is mounted in an approximately one inch square package and is encapsulated, for example laminated, in a flexible or rigid thin film material. This material may also include a suitable adhesive backing for reliably securing the package to an outer surface or printed label of an article of interest. The IC includes therein a receiver section for driving suitable control logic and memory for decoding and storing input information such as an identification number, the baggage owner's name, point of origin, weight, size, route, destination, and the like. This memory includes, but is not limited to, PROMs, EPROMs, EEPROMs, SRAMs, DRAMs, and ferroelectric memory devices. The IC also includes a transmitter section therein operative for transmitting this information to an interrogator upon subsequent IC interrogation. An RF antenna is placed in a desired geometrical configuration (for example, monopole, dipole, loop, bow-tie, or dual-dipole) and incorporated within or on the thin film material and adjacent to the IC in an essentially two dimensional structure, neglecting the approximately 30 mil thickness dimension of the completed structure.
Advantageously, a thin battery is connected to the IC for providing power to the IC. The IC also incorporates circuitry to allow for operation in a sleep mode during transit and in storage in order to conserve power. Thus, at shipment points of origin, destination, and locations in transit, an operator may encode data into the IC or interrogate the IC by signaling the IC from a remote location to thereby “wake up” the IC without engaging in any hands-on operation.
In a preferred embodiment of the invention, the integrated circuit receiver and transmitter are operated in a spread spectrum mode and in the frequency range of 200 Mhz to 10 GHz, with the range of 800 MHz to 8 GHz being the range of most importance. This operation has the effect of avoiding errors or improper operation due to extraneous signal sources and other sources of interference, multipathing, and reflected radiation from the surrounding environment.
Accordingly, it is a further object of this invention to provide an RFID electronic device of the type described and method of fabricating such device.
Another object of this invention is to provide an RFID system and method of operation of the type described which utilizes RF transmitting and receiving sections on a single IC. Such a system has applications for tracking people or articles in both storage and transit.
Another object of this invention is to provide an electronic device of the type described which does not include bulky hybrid circuits, use modulation techniques described above for passive RFID tags, nor require scanning of bar codes, bar code readers, optical character readers, or especially clean operating environments.
Another object of this invention is to provide an electronic device of the type described which may be manufactured using integrated circuit fabrication and packaging processes.
Another object of this invention is to provide an electronic device of the type described which may be reliably and economically manufactured at high yields and at a high performance to price figure of merit.
Another object of this invention is to provide an RFID device of the type described which is field writable and has a transmission range greater than five (5) feet.
Another object of this invention is to provide a novel assembly process for manufacturing the RFID electronic device described herein.
An
Lake Rickie C.
Tuttle John R.
Tuttle Mark E.
Micro)n Technology, Inc.
Tremblay Mark
Wells, St. John, Roberts Gregory & Matkin P.S.
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